Reinforced concrete.



G; M. GRAHAM.

REINFORCED 'GONGRETE. I APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 1, 1907.

983,274. I Patented Feb.7, 1911.

THE NORRIS PETERS cm. WASHINGTON, n. c.

III'IED STA'I E S gTENT OFFICE.

GEORGE lVI. GRAHAM, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO SUSPENSION STEEL CONCRETE COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

REINFORCED CONCRETE.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE M. GRAHAM, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Reinforced Concrete, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to concrete structures which are reinforced by strengthening members of metal embedded in the mass of concrete; and the present improvement has for its object to provide a simple and eflicicnt reinforce means, with which great strength and stability is imparted to a mass of concrete in a ready and economical manner, all as will hereinafter more fully appear.

The accompanying drawing is a perspective view of a part of a concrete floor slab, or the like, having the present improvement applied.

Referring to the drawing, 1 represents the mass of concrete in which is embedded the usual skeleton rod or wire reinforcing center 2, as set forth in my prior Patent No. 865,490, dated September 10, 1907.

3 are a multiplicity of short sections of wire introduced into the interior of the concrete mass 1, in manner hereinafter described, to form a reinforcing layer for the same. Said layer is arranged in a plane parallel with the surface of the concrete mass and with the sections of wire forming said layer extending in all directions and overlapping each other in such plane as illustrated in the drawing.

Prior to the present improvement, pieces of wire and the like, of a length small enough to properly mix with the concrete, were introduced during the mixing operation to form a component part of the entire mass. As distinguished from such type of wire reinforces for concrete masses, the present improvement involves the use of sections of wire of a length which does not permit of the above mentioned mixing with the concrete'mass in the initial preparation of the same, but which are placed on the top surface of the concrete mass forming a floor or the like and allowed to settle therein by gravity until the skeleton reinforcing center is reached and by which their further descent is restrained.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 1, 1907.

Patented Feb. '7, 1911. Serial No. 376,810.

While the mesh of the skeleton rod center 2, as shown in the drawing, has greater extent than the short lengths of wire 3, employed to form the reinforcing layer, it has been found from extended practical use that in the described arrangement such skeleton rod center affords a very effective intercepting means to hold and support the short sections of wire during the setting of the concrete mass when such short sections of wire are placed on the surface of the unset concrete mass and allowed to sink therein by gravity. In the process involved in the present improvement, the short sections of wire in an overlapping mass, sluggishly moving down through the mass of concrete meets the skeleton rod center and are stopped thereby, the short sections of wires resting thereon in turn acting as supports for the short wires having a path between the rods of the skeleton center. In the present improvement, a horizontal position of the shortsections of wire is insured, in that when placed on the top of the green mass of concrete they will necessarily assume a horizontal position before sinking into the same.

WVith the setting and hardening of the concrete mass a floor or other structure of great strength and stability is provided, and so that a minimum thickness of the floor, or other horizontal portion of a building, is required to afford the normal strength necessary in actual use.

Having thus fully described my said in vention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

Reinforced concrete comprising a mass of concrete, a skeleton rod center comprising a cross work of rods forming small rectangular openings, and a multiplicity of short wire sections of a length slightly less than the diameter of the open spaces of the cross work and adapted to ordinarily engage one side of the walls forming a rectangular opening and yet permit the concrete mass to settle slightly below the cross work.

Signed at Chicago, Illinois this 23rd day of May 1907.

GEORGE M. GRAHAM.

Witnesses:

ROBERT BURNS, FRANK S. REID. 

